The National - First Two Pages... & Laugh Track Album • Page 73

I’ve just come to New Zealand as well and it’s not out yet

 

Finally home and able to listen to the LP. Easily better than the last two for me, and i think it’ll probably be able to be lumped into the Alligator - Boxer - HV - Trouble - SWB cateogry where any of them is a reasonable favorite to have.

 

Guess it’s a different midnight than EST

 

It's up on Bandcamp!

 

Oh it’s on Spotify for me

 

Track 2 is the most TWFM-ish pure National song they’ve released in forever. I can see that giving FTPOF haters some wild “they’re back” feels. Ok. Back to listening to Weird Goodbyes now.

 

Oh this slaps

 

Four songs in and yeah I’m all the way in

 

They had an album ready to go, that would give their boys everything they wanted. And they held on to it for a few months in secret. Fun surprise or cruel prank?

(On ‘Space Invaders’, track 2 and title track have been the two standouts of the unheard songs. Other than the curious sequencing of Alph City and Weird Goodbyes mixed in with pretty straight ahead rock/full drums National, pretty flawless first half so far.)

 

I reserve the right to change my mind with more plays, but I think I like Weird Goodbyes more in the context of this album than I did as a standalone.

 

yeah I’m only on that one right now and this is hitting way more than it ever did before

 

If Not in Kansas + Turtleneck + Humiliation got into a thruple, it’d be Smoke Detector.

 

A bold choice for the second half of smoke detector to just have Matt making whale sounds.

 

Listening for the second time now with my nice cans on. So much to love on here.

 

wasn't expecting Alph City as the opener honestly but it works pretty well. hopes are sky high for this

 

bummer how Turn Off The House fades out so quick, that Dessners/Devendorf groove they lock into is so tight

 

ok yeah this is extraordinary. maybe one of their strongest albums front to back already which is just crazy to say. t/t, Deep End, Space Invader and Smoke Detector are some of their best ever, the only song that kinda didn't grab me was Hornets

 

The horns at the end of the title track >>>>

 

I'm glad they decided to press the devendorf button again on this one but the songs aren't connecting for me any more than the ones on Frankenstein did sadly

 

Strongly disagree about WG - it sticks out like a sore thumb amongst the rest of these tracks. The other 11 songs are all phenomenal though.

 

I liked Frankenstein but this is easily better after one listen. Also bring back the Tuesday new music release day. So much better than fridays.

 

I’m enjoying this so far but i don’t think I’m in the right headspace to enjoy it properly right now.

 

Sorry, gotta decide within the first hour of the album's release. I don't make the rules.

 

Eh, I haven't enjoyed "Weird Goodbyes" much at all since it was released last fall, and listening to the exact same version alongside these new songs with amazing instrumentation doesn't really make me like it any more. It kicks ass live though.